The draw also meant Iran finished ninth among all third-placed teams and was eliminated from the tournament.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"I think the match was a little crazy. It sort of went beyond the limits of everyone's endurance. I think we did well to react twice. What we saw in the first half was the work of a great team, a team that has quality, a team that every day shows how good they are, \" Petkovic said at the post-match press conference as quoted by Xinhua.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Petkovic, who will now play against Switzerland, the team he coached for seven years until 2021, said he had not yet had time to process the reunion.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"I haven't even had time to think about the next opponent after the intense game,\" he said. \"Now I found out who we're going to be playing. Switzerland is a great team. The players are great. And I do know them, even if there are new faces and some of them played with me.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Asked about the speculation that the two teams might collude for a mutually beneficial draw, Petkovic stressed that his side played to win.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"I'm extremely happy that in the end, it was football that prevailed,\" he said. \"3-2, 3-3, the score says it all. I think certain behaviors are quite natural. It happens in football. It's part of football. But there was a great will to win.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Petkovic confirmed that even after Algeria took the lead through Riyad Mahrez's second goal in stoppage time, he never instructed his players to sit back.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"My idea is always to play in order to win. Today was not an exception,\" he said. \"It's important to win. During the hydration break, I said to the players that we need to be really balanced. And I think that we were that up until the last minute.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
With the round of 32 now secured, Petkovic said his immediate priority was recovery and celebration before turning attention to Switzerland.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"My idea is always to play in order to win. Today was not an exception,\" he said. \"It's important to win. During the hydration break, I said to the players that we need to be really balanced. And I think that we were that up until the last minute.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Algeria will face Switzerland in Vancouver on July 2, while Austria takes on Spain in Los Angeles the same day.<\/p>\r\n\r\n